NYCT Announces Finalists for 2015 Nonprofit Excellence Awards

 

(New York, NY) – Six nonprofit groups from Manhattan and Brooklyn have been selected as finalists for the 2015 New York Community Trust Nonprofit Excellence Awards, which include $60,000 in prizes as well as tuition scholarships for the Columbia Business School Executive Education Programs in Social Enterprise.

 

The announcement was made by the Nonprofit Coordinating Committee of New York (NPCC), which created and manages the nine-year-old Excellence Awards program.

 

A selection committee of 34 nonprofit management experts chose the six finalists from a list of 10 semifinalists following an intensive application and vetting process that identifies excellent and replicable management practices among nonprofits in New York City, Long Island and Westchester.

 

The six finalists represent a wide range of nonprofit sub-sectors, including arts, culture and humanities; education; and human services. A total of 56 organizations applied for the 2015 Awards. Three winning organizations will be announced and honored at ceremony in November.

 

“Through excellent management, these six finalists are able to attain extraordinary outcomes for the people and causes they serve,” said Melkis Alvarez-Baez, Director of Programs for NPCC. “All nonprofits should study these organizations’ management practices to elevate their own management performance.”

 

"The New York Community Trust is proud to honor nonprofit groups with outstanding management practices,” said Lorie Slutsky, President of The New York Community Trust, one of the region’s leading funders of nonprofits. “These six finalists offer examples of management excellence for the more than 40,000 nonprofits in New York City and its suburbs."

 

This year’s six finalists are:

• America Needs You: Based in Manhattan, America Needs You fights for economic mobility for ambitious, first-generation college students by providing transformative mentorship and intensive career development.

• Bowery Residents’ Committee (BRC): Based in Manhattan, Bowery Residents’ Committee helps people reclaim lives lost by restoring hope and dignity and offering opportunities for health and self-sufficiency.

• Groundswell: Based in Brooklyn, Groundswell brings together youth, artists and community partners, to make public art that advances social change, for a more just and equitable world.

• New York Common Pantry: Based in Manhattan, New York Common Pantry is dedicated to reducing hunger throughout New York City while promoting dignity and self-sufficiency.

• The New York Foundling: Based in Manhattan, The New York Foundling empowers underserved children and families to live healthy, independent and fulfilling lives.

• TNTP (formerly known as The New Teacher Project): Based in Brooklyn, TNTP’s mission is to end the injustice of educational inequality by providing excellent teachers to the students who need them most and by advancing policies and practices that ensure effective teaching in every classroom.

 

“This year’s finalists represent the very best in nonprofit management, which is why foundation leaders pay attention to these Awards and champion these honorees’ work,” said Ronna Brown, President of Philanthropy New York, the regional association of grantmakers representing the interests of over 280 of the most prominent private, corporate and community foundations across the region. “We look forward to hearing the honorees’ compelling stories at the awards ceremony in November."

 

The Excellence Awards program has attracted more than 685 applicants from across the city and its suburbs in its first nine years. The awards recognize outstanding management practices in eight key performance areas identified by thousands of nonprofit leaders across the country.

 

The eight areas of excellence are: management focus on results; strong governance;excellent financial management; diverse and culturally competent organizational practices; enlightened human resources; model IT practices; effectivecommunications; and, exemplary fundraising and resource development. NPCC created the Nonprofit Excellence Awards in 2007 and serves as the program’s tax-exempt manager, in collaboration with The New York Community Trust and Philanthropy New York. WNYC sponsors the program, which is also supported by The Clark Foundation, Ford Foundation, McGladrey LLP, and Columbia Business School Executive Education Programs in Social Enterprise.

 

More about the Nonprofit Excellence Awards, including the Awards’ guiding document, Eight Key Areas of Nonprofit Excellence; past winners; funders; and Selection Committee members, is available at www.npccny.org/info/awards.htm.